Human Rights Commission Looks at ISIS Abuses
On Wednesday, I chaired a Human Rights Commission hearing to look at the abuses of the Islamic State, also known as ISIS or ISIL. There is probably no place on the globe right now where religious minorities are more threatened than the area controlled by the Islamic State. The beheading of foreigners and burning of a Jordanian pilot are just the most public of their many atrocities. As the House considers an authorization for military force in Iraq and Syria, the suffering of people living under the Islamic State has to be considered. I hope that this hearing has helped contribute to that important discussion.
Medicare Advantage Facing Further Cuts
This week, I joined my colleagues on the Energy and Commerce and Ways and Means Committees on a letter urging the administration to reverse course on its proposed changes to the popular and successful Medicare Advantage program. Medicare Advantage is being cut in order to pay for new Obamacare subsidies. The program is successful and popular with seniors, but disliked by Democrats because of its private sector basis. The program has been cut by 10 percent in recent years and is due for further reductions this year.
Republican Budget Introduced
The House Budget Committee introduced and approved a spending plan for fiscal year 2016. This budget balances within 10 years, just as last year's budget did. There are no tax increases in the budget, in fact it contains instructions to make our tax code fairer and simpler. Our plan also calls for saving and strengthening critical entitlement programs like Medicare and the Social Security Disability program. It ends the Obamacare raid on Medicare Advantage. Republicans in the Senate have also introduced a plan to balance the budget. The budget plan should be considered on the House floor next week.
Working Toward a Major Medicare Package
If Congress fails to act before the end of the month, doctors working in Medicare could face a 20 percent cut in their reimbursements for seeing patients. This cut is the result of a policy called the Sustainable Growth Rate that was created a decade ago but has never gone into effect. Since taking over the Health Subcommittee, I've been working on a permanent replacement for this policy. Hopefully, the House will consider a replacement package next week. This week, I joined with Democrat and Republican leaders to release a replacement policy. This will be combined with further language to pay for these reforms. Watch for more next week.
Op-ed of the Week: Science and Secrecy Don't Mix
When Galileo declared that the earth revolved around the sun, he got himself labeled a heretic. Five hundred years later, he is a hero of science. Why? Because his observations and calculations were repeated by countless other individuals and proven to be more true than the old ancient Greek model of the solar system.